Recharge HR: Redefining Engagement

By Nicole Stewart, CPHR, SHRM-SCP and Candace Synchyshyn, CPHR Candidate

The buzzwords “employee engagement” are used often, but in varying contexts. As you examine the concept within your own organization, it’s important to decode the concept: what does employee engagement mean to us?  Is a happy employee an engaged employee?  How do we know whether or not we’re getting it right?

At various stages of our careers, both of us have witnessed the impact that a disengaged workforce can have on turnover, attendance, performance and client satisfaction. And we’ve also seen how engaged workforces – such as Payworks’, which reported 89% engagement in our 2019 employee survey – can thrive. Gallup’s 2017 State of the Global Workplace report cites 41% lower absenteeism, 17% higher productivity and 21% greater profitability among business units in the top quartile of engagement when compared against those in the bottom quartile.

In our experience, engaged employees are those who are fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about their work, take positive action to further the organization’s reputation and interests, and demonstrate positive attitudes towards the organization and its values. Each of these facets has a common foundation: the relationship, commitment and trust that exists between an employee and an organization, which in turn influences behaviours.

While it’s easy to conflate this emotional connection with employee happiness, engaged employees are often happy but happy employees aren’t always engaged. Happy employees generally like where they work and the perks that come along with it (like ping pong tables, beer kegs, and other trappings of a hip 21^st century workplace) but aren’t particularly inspired to contribute beyond the basic scope of their own role.

Compensation is another factor that you should be cautious not to confuse with engagement. Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene Theory considers compensation a “hygiene factor” – that is to say, a maintenance feature of a job that can prevent employee dissatisfaction but doesn’t necessarily create employee satisfaction itself. Ultimately, getting compensation right means it won’t get in the way of employee engagement, but you won’t find that it builds it either.

So, if not happiness or satisfaction, not ping pong tables or compensation… how do we develop employee engagement?

1.     Create a workplace where employees can be themselves and are trusted to get the job done.

Chances are, you’ve felt the stress of being micromanaged, and you likely didn’t stick around – those environments generate higher turnover and diminish performance among the staff that stay. When staff feel empowered to manage their own objectives and time, they typically outperform their industry peers.

An employee also needs to feel like they can participate as their authentic self within their team. We should aim to build our teams around complement, not fit, and celebrate the benefits of diverse perspectives that inspire us all to be better and deliver upon our organizational purpose. It’s less about the ping pong table and more about building a group that would want to play a game together in the first place.

2.     Create a workplace where employees have flexibility and are encouraged to grow.

Empowering employees to manage their own career evolution within your organization improves morale, retention and performance. If employees are encouraged to tap into latent skill sets or budding interests to contribute to their organization in new ways, their roles are going to feel fresher, longer. 

Consistent forward motion along the continuum of responsibility and reward demonstrates the employer trust that’s key to retention.

3.     Create a workplace where employees know their organization genuinely cares about their wellbeing.

The most positive and productive work cultures recognize the dual influences of work and home on each other and support bringing those spheres together as opposed to pitting them against each other in a likely impossible quest for zero sum balance.

In his podcast "The Human Assignment", Matt Johnston speaks to the fact that “what happens at work is what people bring home and what happens at home comes with them to work.” Empowering employees to embrace this integration and enjoy flexibility in both environments will create a less stressed, more productive workforce.

4.     Create a workplace where employees understand and connect with the company’s purpose and that the work they’re doing makes a difference.

Employees feel most gratified and engaged when they can see firsthand the impact of their work on their colleagues, clients and communities. And as our workforces continue to skew younger, organizations’ commitment to their communities should increase accordingly; this will keep them in alignment with the values younger workers cite as being most important to them.

Even if your organization isn’t a not-for-profit with a clear philanthropic agenda, there are still a myriad of ways to demonstrate real community support: sponsorships, fundraising initiatives, paid time off for volunteering, top-down cultural messaging from your leadership team and more.

Now that you know what engagement looks like, you should have a sense of how to assess the engagement levels of your own employees. 

Engagement surveys can provide valuable knowledge, metrics and insight into strengths and opportunities, but you first need to ensure you’re ready for the feedback you’ll receive – not only to absorb the positive (or negative!) results, but also to enact real change based upon them. For results to simply start collecting dust can damage long-term engagement, as being asked for an opinion and then having it ignored makes employees feel as if their voices don’t matter after all.

If you’re not ready to delve deep into survey results, start by establishing open and transparent dialogue, building relationships and strengthening communication within your organization – all of these methods will give you a good feel for how you’ve set the stage for engaging employees.

As leaders, it’s our responsibility to create an environment that cultivates engagement. To quote Maryanne Spatola, “Leadership behavior shapes your culture; culture shapes your results.” If we offer challenging goals and projects that clearly reflect organizational objectives, contribute to and encourage the development of our employees and trust that we’re hired collaborative professionals who can manage their own deliverables, we’re sure to see engagement flourish.

About the authors:
Nicole Stewart, CPHR, SHRM-SCP is the Director of Human Resources at Payworks. Nicole has almost 20 years of management and HR experience, and has spent much of her career cultivating Payworks’ unique, high-engagement, low-turnover culture as the leader of our talented team of HR professionals.

Candace Synchyshyn, CPHR Candidate, is the Manager of Human Resources at Payworks. Candace has spent the last five years partnering with employees to support and guide them as they realize success.  She fosters trust through transparency, leveraging employees’ strengths and identifying opportunities for growth.